Traffic, in a transportation sense, generally refers to the movement of entities (e.g., people, etc.) by foot and/or by conveyance. Typically conveyances can include vehicles, such as, bicycles, cars, trucks, busses, and other travel aids. As can be appreciated, the entities may travel as individuals, groups, etc., and/or combinations thereof. At times, the flow of traffic may be interrupted by at least one of delays, congestion, travel path design (e.g., intersections and conjunctions of streets, roads, bike paths, highways, etc.), accidents, traffic flow control systems, and other traffic conditions. Other conditions can also contribute to decreases in traffic flow. Examples of these conditions may include, but are in no way limited to, weather (e.g., rain, snow, ice, fog, etc.), time of day (e.g., rush hour, etc.), speed traps, careless/distracted driving, travel path conditions (e.g., potholes, cracks, surface debris, spills, etc.), and the like.
Two major causes of traffic congestion can be attributed to accidents and construction. In general, traffic can be managed in advance of a planned construction project. This management may include route detours (e.g., an alternate route around the construction), lane closures, road closures, warnings of the detours in the form of signs posted about the construction condition, etc. In most cases, the management of traffic is static, or preplanned, and lasts for the length of a construction project or phase of a construction project. In other words, the management of traffic surrounding a construction area does not substantially change over time, even when traffic congestion increases or decreases over that time. As can be appreciated there is no intelligent management of traffic in this situation.
Unfortunately, the management of traffic in response to an accident is not usually planned, and as such, can cause even more problems with congestion, delays, and interruptions in traffic flow. As streets, lanes, roads, and other travel paths are closed, traffic is diverted by one or more signs, officials, and forced alternate routes. Among other things, these traffic management techniques result in an increase in congestion in the areas adjacent to the traffic condition and along the forced alternate routes. Moreover, with respect to accident conditions, the management of traffic occurs only after a period of time has passed since the accident occurred. These techniques typically only shift the traffic congestion and/or result in new accidents.